Contemporary homes, offices and buildings can be equipped with various devices that are capable of remote communication with a computerized device, e.g., a Smartphone or a computer. These devices include a radio for wireless communication, e.g., Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), etc. These devices communicate with remote devices, either a direct connection to the device, e.g., Bluetooth pairing with the device, or though the internet via an internet access point, e.g., a Wi-Fi router. Such devices include, but are not limited to, doors, lights, lamps, thermometers, thermostats, garage doors, pool control systems, and appliances such as air conditioners, refrigerators, induction stove tops, ranges, and laundry machines. By way of example, U.S. Pat. No. 8,931,400 discloses temperature monitoring systems and methods whereby the temperature status of an item or items may be remotely monitored.
One category of remote communication device is termed a smartplug. Generally speaking, a smartplug is a power outlet connected to power line, e.g., a wall electrical outlet, that has a wireless radio for communication with a remote device. The remote device may be used to control the power state of the smartplug, that is, on or off, to control power delivery to the devices plugged into the smartplug. In some instances, the smartplug can relay information to the remote device, e.g., the power usage of the device(s) plugged into smartplug, as measured by a power meter incorporated into the smartplug. With respect to smartplugs, the power usage of the wireless radio is not of much concern, because the radio is powered by the power line to which the plug is connected.
Many other devices, though, are not directly connected to a power line. In many cases, it is not practical, or would be expensive, to connect them to a power line. For example, devices such as thermostats or door locks would be impractical to connect to a power line, especially where the device is being retrofitted into a location where no power line currently exists. Nor do these devices typically have power cords to connect to a smartplug, as such would often be impractical. These devices typically run on battery power, and the batteries also power the wireless radio. In many applications, the high power requirements of a Wi-Fi radio make Wi-Fi communication with these battery-powered devices not practical. The batteries would drain quickly and need to be changed or recharged. Even where the batteries are changed or recharged relatively easily, this is a nuisance and cost to the user, and there is a risk the battery would drain before the battery could be changed or recharged.
One solution has been to use lower power wireless radios, such as Bluetooth, and later, BLE. However, while Bluetooth and Bluetooth Low Energy radios require less energy than Wi-Fi radios, Bluetooth technology has a limited range that readers them unsuitable for the longer distance communication needed to communicate with the internet access point, which may be located at a significant distance from the device. The result is that such Bluetooth enabled devices are not designed to connect to the internet and communicate with remote devices outside the range of the wireless radio, and it is not possible to communicate with or control, for example, a door locking mechanism, using a remote device that is not at or near the location of the device. Instead, these devices are designed to communicate with remote devices, typically mobile devices, e.g., a Smartphone, that is brought within the range of the device. In the case of Bluetooth communication, the device and remote device must also first pair, or establish the communication connection, each time the two are brought into range with each other. This process takes a certain amount of time to complete, resulting in a delay before the two can communicate with each other.